Reclassification of the Marbled Murrelet under the Oregon ESA Photo: Martin Raphael, USFS Kevin Blakely, Wildlife Division Deputy Administrator Christina Donehower, Strategy Species Coordinator
Species Description • Small, fish-eating seabird • Spends most of life at sea but flies up to 50 miles inland for nesting in older forests • Lays single egg in depression in moss, lichen, or tree litter on large limbs Photos (top to bottom): Roy Lowe, USFWS; David Patte, USFWS
Legal Status • Federally-threatened in WA, OR, and CA since 1992 • State-threatened in OR since 1995 • Primary reason for these listings: loss and modification of older forest nesting habitat Photo: Nick Hatch, USFS
Petition to Uplist • Commission received petition on June 21, 2016 • Petitioners were Cascadia Wildlands, the Center for Biological Diversity, Coast Range Forest Watch, Oregon Wild, the Audubon Society of Portland, and the Oregon Chapter of the Sierra Club • Petitioners recommended that Marbled Murrelet be reclassified from threatened to endangered under Oregon ESA
Uplisting Review Process • Commission accepted petition on September 2, 2016 • This decision initiated the rulemaking process, which includes: 1) Consultation with interested and affected parties • Agencies, tribes, local gov’ts, other states, public 2) A biological status review of the species in Oregon • Biology, life history, population trends, threats 3) Peer review of the Department’s status review • Four peer reviewers
Potential Habitat in OR (2012) • Most remaining habitat persists on Northwest Oregon State public lands Forests • State land-owning/managing Siuslaw National Forest agencies with most murrelet habitat include ODF, DSL, and OPRD Elliott State Forest Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest Fig. 2, ODFW (2018). Habitat-suitability data from Raphael et al. (2016a).
Uplisting Under Oregon ESA • Endangered Species: any native Northwest Oregon State wildlife species determined by the Forests Commission to be in danger of extinction throughout any significant Siuslaw National portion of its range within the state Forest (ORS 496.004(6)(a)) • Oregon ESA creates rules for state Elliott State land-owning/managing agencies, Forest not private or non-state public land (ORS 496.192; OAR 635-100-0135(1)) Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest • Endangered species background brief
Uplisting Criteria for Marbled Murrelet 1. Based on documented and verifiable scientific information and other data, has the likelihood of survival of the species diminished such that the species is in danger of extinction throughout any significant portion of its range within Oregon? AND 2. Does at least one of the following three factors exist? a) Most populations b) Overutilization of the c) Existing state or are undergoing species or its habitat for federal programs or OR OR imminent or active commercial, recreational, regulations are deterioration of their scientific, oreducational inadequate to range or primary purposes is occurring or is protect the species likely to occur. habitat in Oregon. or its habitat. (OAR 635-100-0111(1) and 635-100-0105(6))
Key Considerations • Habitat requirements, life history • Threats, stressors, climate change • At-sea survey results • Extinction probability models • OSU telemetry data • Habitat change analyses Photos (top to bottom): OSU Flickr; NURP-NOAA; InciWeb Incident Information System
Commission Decision Option 1 – Accepted the Petitioners’ recommendation to reclassify the Marbled Murrelet as endangered under the Oregon ESA. Directed staff to develop survival guidelines for adoption at the time of reclassification in June 2018. Photo: Nick Hatch, USFS
Moving Forward • ODFW, in consultation and cooperation with state land- owning/managing agencies, shall determine if state land can play a role in conservation of the species (ORS 496.182(8)(a)) • Role is determined by the land-managing agency in consultation with ODFW o ODFW provides outline for conservation needs of species o Balance statutes, rules, policy, social-economic impacts and conservation needs of the species • State land-owning/managing agencies to develop endangered species management plan and to comply with Commission-adopted survival guidelines
Survival Guidelines • Survival guidelines are quantifiable and measurable guidelines necessary to ensure the survival of individual members of the species o Take avoidance o Surveys o Protection of critical resource sites such as a nest o Interagency coordination • By law, survival guidelines apply only to actions on state- owned, managed, or leased lands
Economic Considerations • A biological status review does not examine economic implications of uplisting o Based on documented and verified scientific information • Economic considerations enter into developing and implementation of survival guidelines and approval of endangered species management plans • The Commission shall work with private landowners, affected cities, affected counties, and affected local service districts to mitigate adverse impact on local economies when Commission adds a species to the T&E list (ORS 496.182(2)(b))
Next Steps • Mar. 2018: Draft survival guidelines • June 2018: Rulemaking to reclassify species, adopt survival guidelines • Dec. 2019 (within 18 months of uplisting): Affected state agencies develop, adopt endangered species management plans Photo: Tom Hamer • June 2020 (within 24 months of uplisting): Commission reviews, approves endangered species management plans Additional information and process updates: http://www.dfw.state.or.us/wildlife/hot_topics/marbled_murrelet.asp
Photo: Rich MacIntosh, USFWS
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